


do you wish we’d fall in love

by differentdiff



Category: BTOB
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Magic, mentions of being afraid of being in water, mermaid au, slight angst ?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-31
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2020-04-05 21:44:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19049026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/differentdiff/pseuds/differentdiff
Summary: how do you fall in love without a heart?





	do you wish we’d fall in love

**Author's Note:**

> for mermay ! except i’m not finishing it during mermay !
> 
> (long) title from the saltwater room by owl city

eunkwang was having a pretty a normal day. at least, normal until some naked guy passed out in front of him.

he woke up at 7am like usual, had breakfast like usual, went to work, hung out with friends, and was on his way home by sunset like usual. the _un_ usual thing was when he spotted out of the corner of his eye a man who was walking up the steps from the beach with no clothes or anything on him. the man looked dizzy, not walking straight and sluggish in his movements. he was also dripping wet, probably because he had just been in the ocean. eunkwang froze, not sure how to feel or what to do, and when the man reached the top of the steps, they made eye contact for just a few seconds before the guy collapsed on the sidewalk in front of eunkwang.

eunkwang had panicked and, with his good samaritan instincts, picked the man up. he did his best to arrange the guy into a piggyback position so he could carry the man the rest of the way home. in that moment, his panic levels spiked. he tried (and failed) to ignore the glares of old couples and parents who were covering their kids’ eyes. he also tried (and failed) to ignore the feeling of having the man’s bare body against his back, especially around his lower back. eunkwang’s journey home had never felt so long, even if it was only about fifteen minutes from where he found the man.

now eunkwang’s here, at home, trying to shake off the stress of having to dry off and dress the man (out of good citizenship) without accidentally touching any of the man’s private parts.

(he was only somewhat successful.)

eunkwang sighs deeply as he sits across from the sofa where he laid the man down. in all honesty, this isn’t the weirdest thing to happen to him on his way home—he’d probably rank this experience as weirder than the water-powered jetpack incident, but under that one time he was forced into an odd improv scene about a mime and IU. however, the Stress induced from this situation had been a lot to handle. he had been so conscious of the man on his back that it made him feel a lot more tired than he would’ve been, and it didn’t help that people kept staring at him on the way.

he sighs again. eunkwang gets a good look at the man in front of him: bright red hair, pretty face, and a fairly muscular body from what he remembers when dressing the man. he wonders how the man ended up naked and drenched with nothing on him. maybe the man was a nudist and forgot his things on the beach after a tiring swim. or maybe his stuff got swept away by the tide and he gave up trying to swim after them. or maybe... eunkwang shakes his head, not wanting to think of anything sinister. the man didn’t look hurt in any way but... eunkwang will have to check how the man feels when he wakes up.

as eunkwang is thinking, he sees the man’s eyes flutter. eunkwang sits up, alert. the man opens his eyes slowly, blinking as he adjusts to the light. his eyes dart around to examine the room before eventually landing on eunkwang. the man licks his lips and clears his throat, “where... where am i?”

“you’re in my apartment,” eunkwang answers, “i took you here after you passed out....” while saying it, eunkwang thinks he probably should have called the paramedics or something instead of taking the man to his home, but it was more of a gut instinct than a rational decision so he couldn’t exactly have helped it.

“apartment?” the man asks, “what is that?”

eunkwang raises his eyebrows. is the man not fluent in korean? “you know... like... a house inside a bigger house... or like the room of a bigger building but only for a certain person and you have to pay for it regularly?”

the man tilts his head to the side. “that’s such an odd concept... we didn’t have that at home.”

 _home?_ eunkwang thinks, _where could his home be that it doesn’t have apartments? i’m sure they exist overseas..._ “where are you... from?” he asks the man.

“the ocean,” the man replies matter-of-factly.

 _so he_ is _from overseas?_ “like... america? or europe?”

“no, _in_ the ocean. the sea of japan, to be exact.”

 _huh???_ “so you’re from japan?”

“ _no_ , i-“ the man sighs “-i’ve never been on land before, i lived in the water, with all the fish you humans steal from us.” eunkwang stares at him blankly, causing him to emit a groan. he grabs his legs, bending them as close to his chest as he can, “ _these_ aren’t what i was born with—i was born with a tail. i could probably breathe underwater right now if there was water around me.”

eunkwang stares until he realises what the man had said. his jaw drops, the pieces coming together, “you’re a _mermaid_?!”

it takes the man a second to answer, not recognising eunkwang’s words at first. “right, yeah, i’m... a murrmaid....”

eunkwang processes this information, then sighs in relief. “oh thank god... with the way you had fainted, i was afraid something bad happened... was _that_ why you were soaking wet when i found you? you were fresh from the ocean?”

the man nods. “i’ve just received my legs from a witch... i must have felt faint because of the difference between air and water... so do you believe me?”

eunkwang pauses. does he? he knows he was the one who suggested it, but why did he believe that this man was a mermaid so quickly? he should be more skeptical—he’s talking to a stranger, after all.

“is there... any way you could show me your tail?” he ends up asking.

the man ponders for a bit before nodding with a smile. “the witch told me that if i...” he looks down at his legs and furrows his eyebrows. as he hooks his thumbs into the waistband of the shorts eunkwang put on him and pushes them down, eunkwang starts to panic.

“w-what are you doing??”

the man looks at him like it should be obvious. “i don’t know why you put this on me, but if my legs go back to being a tail, i shouldn’t have something in between the legs.”

eunkwang flushes. he turns his head quickly as the man takes off the shorts and underwear in one move. he asks eunkwang to get him water, and eunkwang runs to get a water bottle, not wanting to face the man’s privates for the nth time. eunkwang gives the man the bottle, adamant in facing away from the man’s lower body. he hears the bottle being uncapped, followed immediately by the sound of water being poured out. worried about his sofa, eunkwang turns back to the man, only to find that where the man’s legs were was a big fish tail. eunkwang gasps.

the man’s tail is long and looks powerful, with a deep red colour, like burgundy, but the scales catch the light in a way that makes it seem like more of a ruby colour. the fins resemble that of a betta fish, but are somewhat transparent with white accents. it was mesmerising to look at, in eunkwang’s eyes, and he raises a hand to touch before stopping himself. he looks up at the man, “can... can i?” the man nods, and eunkwang gently lays his hand on the man’s tail. the scales surprisingly feel like silk, even more so when eunkwang slowly and lightly brushes his hand down the side. he looks up toward the waist, where the man is raising up his shirt to reveal where the scales fade into skin, showing that the tail is real. eunkwang gulps. he looks back up to the man’s face, suddenly noticing how handsome the man is. eunkwang’s face and neck feel hotter as he looks across the man’s body.

“s-so,” eunkwang starts, still feeling embarrassed, “how would you turn it back into legs?”

“by drying it off completely.”

“oh, i’ll get a towel then!” eunkwang runs off to get a towel, trying to cool himself down in the process.

when he receives the towel, the man dries his tail off fairly quickly and it disappears, leaving human legs in its place. eunkwang urges the man to put the shorts back on. the man is reluctant, but eventually agrees. “why is it necessary to wear these?” he asks eunkwang.

“it’s... for decency,” eunkwang replies, “you shouldn’t show your... ‘parts’ to other people unless they ask and you want them to see...”

the man huffs, “humans are animals like the rest of us, why hide anything? but i shouldn’t object—i came here to learn about humans after all. it’s only right that i follow your customs and laws.”

eunkwang doesn’t know what to say to that. the man has a point, he guesses, but that’s just how things are. the way the man speaks also catches eunkwang offguard—the man looks just like any other human, so it’s weird to hear him talk like he’s not.

“oh,” the man starts, “i guess i should thank you for taking me in.”

“oh, it’s nothing, really, i just thought i shouldn’t leave a person laying on the ground... though, i wonder why my first instinct was to bring you to my apartment instead of calling for help but... guess it was for the better, huh?”

the man chuckles, “i guess so.”

eunkwang stares at the man. a part of him is in disbelief that _he_ of all people took in a pretty mermaid with a pretty laugh. the rest of him, though, is wondering what the future will be like. will this merman stay with eunkwang in his small apartment? or will he get a life of his own and leave?

eunkwang then realises they haven’t introduced themselves yet. he shouldn’t be thinking of letting a mermaid stay with him if they haven’t even exchanged names. eunkwang clears his throat, “um, my name’s, uh, eunkwang, by the way. seo eunkwang.”

“ah, right,” the mermaid laughs again, making eunkwang’s stomach turn, “my name is minhyuk.”

eunkwang smiles awkwardly up at the mermaid— _minhyuk_ —his chest feeling tight. eunkwang continues, “so, uh... what do you plan to do from now on? will you... are you going to, uh, stay with me?”

minhyuk takes a second to think, humming. “if you don’t mind... would you allow me to stay here?”

“of course, yeah, no problem, i don’t mind!” eunkwang answers a little too quickly. a blush dusts across his cheeks as minhyuk laughs at his reaction.

“then, i’ll be in your care,” minhyuk says, bowing his head toward eunkwang.

“l-likewise...” eunkwang bows back.

they make eye contact as they raise their heads. minhyuk smiles at him, making eunkwang’s heart skip a beat.

eunkwang is pretty sure he’s screwed.

 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

 

“a... mermaid?”

eunkwang nods. his friends stare at him skeptically. “i know it’s hard to believe,” eunkwang says, “but it’s true! i saw his tail, but it only appears when he’s wet!”

he’s been trying to explain to his friends at their usual hangout spot what happened to him the day before, but it doesn’t seem like anyone’s buying it. eunkwang knew the youngest ones—sungjae, ilhoon, and peniel—probably wouldn’t believe him, but it seems like hyunsik and changsub don’t either.

“you sure this isn’t some deadbeat who’s trying to scam you for free shelter and food?” changsub says, raising an eyebrow.

“ _no_ , and even if it was, i’d be happy to help someone _stay alive_.”

“hyung, you work as a receptionist with a low salary, you can barely keep _yourself_ alive,” ilhoon remarks, “how do you think you’re going to afford another person that doesn’t earn money, mermaid or not?”

“we’ll just... share stuff. he’s about my size, and i’ll just start getting enough food for two, i mean...” eunkwang calculates in his head the average monthly cost of food and doubles it. he sighs as he finds that food expenses will take a big chunk out of his personal spending money. he _could_ eat less, but eating regularly is important to him, so his only option is to spend more. “it’ll be fine, i’ll just learn to be more humble!”

“aren’t you humble enough?” hyunsik notes, “you haven’t bought anything for pleasure since last month, and that was just a slightly overpriced coffee mug. you don’t even drink coffee.”

“it was a cute mug! it had the cat tail as a handle and the face was cute... anyway, i buy stationary a lot! that’s something i buy for pleasure.”

“you use all of your stationary for work, though,” sungjae mentions. “even then you buy the boring stationary to look professional, not the ones you think are cute.”

eunkwang whines. “look, i just wanted you guys to know that i’m gonna be living with a mermaid from now on!! i’ll figure out expenses and stuff, i’ll cross that bridge when i get there...”

the group grows silent. peniel pats eunkwang on the back, “we’re just worried about you. we’re also skeptical about the mermaid bit and think someone is just using you.” the rest of the group nods surely.

eunkwang groans, “i’m telling you, he’s really a mermaid!!”

hyunsik places a hand on eunkwang’s shoulder, “maybe you should sleep on it, hyung. you don’t seem like you’re in your right mind.”

“et tu, hyunsik?” eunkwang looks at his friends. they’re all looking at him with some sort of concern. he sighs, “i’ll just go home. maybe i shouldn’t have told you guys... i’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

eunkwang gets up from his seat, exasperated, and leaves. his friends try to call him back, but he ignores them.

as he’s walking out, he realises that he probably overreacted—would he believe his friends if they had said they’d seen a mermaid? probably not.

he sighs. he’ll apologise to them through the groupchat when he gets home.

 

 

stepping through the doorway, eunkwang finds minhyuk watching tv at home. he remembers having to explain television and related technologies to minhyuk earlier this morning and laughs to himself. minhyuk learns fast, but there are some things that makes absolutely no sense to him. which is okay, since eunkwang doesn’t understand much about technology either.

he goes to sit next to minhyuk, who glances at eunkwang for only a second. “i’m home~” eunkwang lilts, trying to get minhyuk to acknowledge him.

“so you are,” minhyuk replies shortly, his gaze fixed on the tv screen. eunkwang huffs—another person disregarding him today.

eunkwang watches what’s on the tv, curious as to what’s grabbing minhyuk’s attention. it seems to be a nature documentary about the ocean; does minhyuk miss his home already? eunkwang expresses his thought out loud.

“not really,” minhyuk answers, “i just wanted to know what humans think about sealife. there are so many things you haven’t discovered about the ocean yet, it almost makes humans look dumb.”

eunkwang snorts at that. “maybe humans _are_ kinda dumb, we’re letting global warming happen after all.”

“global warming?”

“you know, like how the world’s getting warmer? you’ve probably noticed or heard about it, right? how the ice caps are melting and ocean levels are rising? it’s all because of humans.”

“no, i’ve never heard of that... i did notice that the water has been getting warmer recently, though. but only slightly—to me, the water’s always a nice, comfortable temperature.”

minhyuk turns his head to make eye contact with eunkwang briefly before turning back to the documentary. they don’t say anything for a while, both of them watching clownfish moving in and out of anemone as the narrator describes it. of course, it reminds eunkwang of “Finding Nemo”, further reminding him of all the underwater stories humans have written that minhyuk has yet to see. eunkwang smiles, thinking of the movie minhyuk absolutely has to watch.

“minhyuk, would you like to watch a movie called ‘The Little Mermaid’?”

 

 

eunkwang learns that although minhyuk can speak and understand korean pretty fluently, he can’t read. eunkwang has to change the settings so that the korean dub is playing. he doesn’t mind, he just usually prefers the subtitles. neither of them say much during the movie, and luckily minhyuk seems to understand everything.

“wow,” minhyuk says as the movie ends, “that was surprisingly accurate to my situation.”

eunkwang raises his eyebrows, “mermaids are really like that?”

“huh? oh, no, of course not. fish and crabs and seagulls don’t talk and there is no ‘king-dom’, since we migrate often and in small groups.” eunkwang deflates at minhyuk’s explanation. minhyuk continues, “but ariel’s feelings about humans... i can relate to that. magic does exist—that’s how i got my legs, like ariel. though, instead of falling in love with a human, i was just curious about what life was like above the surface. so far, it’s been a very interesting experience.” he smiles at eunkwang, who feels something catch in his throat.

eunkwang clears it, “s-so, how would you rate this movie?”

“‘rate’ it?”

“yeah, like is it a one out of five stars or is it a five out of five, or... you know...”

“why stars?”

“well, it doesn’t have to be stars, that’s just what’s most common. you could say one out of five crabs, or three out of seven dinglehoppers, whatever you prefer. it’s just a scale saying if you thought it was bad or good or meh, you know?”

minhyuk considers his rating, hugging his legs to his chest. “maybe... four... out of... six mermaids?”

eunkwang laughs, “that works! so you thought it was okay? not bad?”

minhyuk nods, “not bad. inaccurate depiction of mermaid life, somewhat accurate depiction of what human-positive mermaids think, very enjoyable... not bad. how would you ‘rate’ it, eunkwang?”

eunkwang hums, “mmmaybe... five out of six mermaids? it’s a classic disney princess movie, but it’s not my favourite. i like beauty and the beast better.”

“beauty and the beast?” minhyuk tilts his head with curiosity.

“oh right, you haven’t watched any other disney movies... maybe on my next day off i’ll show you a lot more!”

minhyuk’s eyes light up as he smiles, “that would be nice.”

eunkwang smiles back. they sit staring at each other for a while. eunkwang notices that minhyuk does have things in common with ariel from the movie—being the red haired beauty, for one thing, and the desire to be among humans. though, eunkwang doesn’t know much about that. in fact, eunkwang doesn’t know that much about minhyuk’s motivations at all, he just let minhyuk stay with him because minhyuk doesn’t have anywhere else to go.

(also because minhyuk is very pretty, but that’s a minor detail.)

minhyuk did mention that his motivation was just a curiosity about human life, but eunkwang wanted to know more. “what made you so curious about humans to ask a witch for legs? that’s where you said you got them from, right?”

“yeah, you’re right,” minhyuk responds, “for me... my pod has always stuck relatively close to the coast so we’ve had some close encounters with humans. i personally just always observed humans whenever i could, but it wasn’t really enough to understand why humans did what they did, and i could never stay near them long since they’d always steal the fish we hunted for and my pod cautioned against them. still... i wanted to know more. when i heard from one of my friends in our pod that there was someone who could allow me to go up to the surface and live among humans, i sought them out almost immediately. there’s not much else i can say... yeah, my story’s just... that simple.”

eunkwang hears some hesitance in minhyuk’s last statement. is there something more? maybe eunkwang had just imagined it.

he then remembers when he was trying to explain to his friends about minhyuk. “hey, is it okay that i told my friends about you? or, i tried to, at least...”

minhyuk thinks about it. “that’s fine. i assume that humans know that we exist, seeing how a something like ‘the little mermaid’ exists.”

“well... not really. humans think that the existence of mermaids is debatable, but most people don’t think they’re real. in fact, when i tried telling my friends today, they didn’t believe me!”

minhyuk furrows his eyebrows. “humans really don’t know anything about sealife, huh...”

“yeah...” eunkwang sighs. he pouts, thinking. he’d ask minhyuk if he could take a picture of minhyuk’s tail, but somehow eunkwang doesn’t feel comfortable doing it.

eunkwang then remembers that he was going to apologise to the group. he gets his phone out and unlocks it, opening up kakaotalk. when he starts typing, he suddenly feels minhyuk lean on him. eunkwang yelps.

“that’s the ‘phone’, right? what are you going to do?” minhyuk asks, squishing eunkwang against the sofa’s armrest.

“i’m, uh–“ eunkwang clears his throat, his neck feelin warm, “i’m going to, uh, text— _message_ —my friends. when they said they didn’t believe you were real, i kinda overreacted and left abruptly...”

eunkwang waits for minhyuk to respond, but he doesn’t. when eunkwang turns to look at minhyuk, he finds that minhyuk’s face is super close to his and jumps, letting the armrest dig into his side as he leans back to breathe. minhyuk says, “you can message them, it’s not like i’ll know what you’re saying to them anyway.”

right, minhyuk can’t read. eunkwang makes a note to see if he can teach minhyuk how, but for now he swipes up on his phone screen to open the keyboard.

  
_eungga_ :  
hey guys.......... sorry i got all worked up today............

 _yookyookyook_ :  
yeah u didnt have to leave

 _eungga_ :  
i knowwㅜㅜㅜㅜ

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
it’s okay, nbd

 _chansobu-san_ :  
ur at home right  
u should send a pic of ur mermaid friend  
so we know if hes th real deal

 _yookyookyook_ :  
YEAYYEAYEA  
even if hes just a random guy we should see if hes hot  
then he could become an influencer or smth n earn u that good youtube money  
dolla dolla

 _chansobu-san_ :  
PLEASE stop talking  
doofus

 _yookyookyook_ :  
peabrain

 _chansobu-san_ :  
loser

 _yookyookyook_ :  
idiot  
bitchbaby  
moron  
dimwit  
i got 96 more insults babey u wanna try me?

 _chansobu-san_ :  
oh yeah ?  
i have like 106 !!!!  
dickwad  
cumbuckrt

 _yookyookyook_ :  
I WILL PEE UR PANTS SHITSTAIN

  
eunkwang turns to minhyuk as sungjae and changsub continue to fight in the chat. he gulps as minhyuk looks at him curiously. “would you... can i... would you... um, like to take a picture... with me...?”

minhyuk gasps softly, “i’d love to! with the ‘camera’ right? it’s such a cool thing... we can take a ‘picture’!”

eunkwang’s heart clenches—minhyuk is... cute. he swipes away from kakaotalk to the camera. he holds his phone out to get them both in the frame. eunkwang throws a peace sign and smiles in a way he thinks is cute. minhyuk notices and tries to copy eunkwang, and it makes eunkwang’s heart squeeze. he snaps the picture and shows the result to minhyuk. honestly, they look pretty silly, but minhyuk seems fascinated by it. “wow... that’s us!” minhyuk laughs.

“you’re so cute...” eunkwang thinks aloud.

“huh?” minhyuk looks up at eunkwang with big eyes.

“huh? uh, nothing, i didn’t say anything...” eunkwang takes the phone back and swipes back to kakaotalk. unsurprisingly, sungjae and changsub are still arguing.

  
_chansobu-san_ :  
UGLIE !!!!!!!!!!!!  
UR LIKE ONE OF THOSE BABIES WITH SCRUNCHED FACES AS SOON AS THEY’RE BORN

 _yookyookyook_ :  
[image sent]  
U JUST DESCRIBED URSELF

 _eungga_ :  
guys i have a pic

 _chansobu-san_ :  
WHY DO U HAVE MY BABY PICTURES ????????  
oh shit show us !!!!!!!

 _eungga_ :  
[image sent]

 _yookyookyook_ :  
me n ur mom are close friends bc she likes me more than u  
Woah ........ whered u say u found him

 _eungga_ :  
the beach !!!!! he’s a mermaid !!!!!!!

 _chansobu-san_ :  
i kinda believe u now cuz mermaids are like supposed 2 b pretty  
but also pretty humans exist  
like me

 _yookyookyook_ :  
like me  
shut up

 _chansobu-san_ :  
shut up sungjae  
anyway

 _yookyookyook_ :  
no You shut up

 _chansobu-san_ :  
[sticket sent]  
ANYWAY  
he could still be a scammer  
lure you in with his good looks  
n then rob u of all ur money !!!

 _eungga_ :  
he’s right next to me you know

 _chansobu-san_ :  
HUH

 _eungga_ :  
he just can’t read  
Because He’s Been Underwater All His Life  
they don’t hav ebooks underwater  
*have books

 _chansobu-san_ :  
are u sure............

 _eungga_ :  
YES  
anyway i just wanted to apologise for earlier  
[sticker sent]  
and hopefully one day u guys will believe me............

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
ur good  
just don’t skip out on us next time  
i want to believe u :(

 _eungga_ :  
hyunsik-ahhhh  
[sticker sent]  
this is why ur my favourite

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
^^

 _yookyookyook_ :  
UGH get a room

 _chansobu-san_ :  
is this allowed? is This Allowed?

  
eunkwang puts his phone down with a deep sigh. he purses his lips and looks at minhyuk. “you’re done messaging your friends?” minhyuk asks.

eunkwang nods. “they know you’re real, but they don’t think you’re a mermaid.”

minhyuk hums. “well, that’s their problem... you should teach me how to read.”

eunkwang raises his eyebrows. “i was actually gonna ask if you wanted me to teach you but... i don’t think i’m the best teacher... i’ve been speaking and reading and writing in korean my entire life but i’m not even that good at it,” he laughs.

minhyuk smiles reassuringly, “that’s fine, i’ll probably learn a lot on my own anyway since you’ll be out most of the day. besides–“ he places a hand on eunkwang’s thigh “–i’m starting to feel more comfortable around you. it’s probably better if you teach me than someone else.”

“yeah....” eunkwang looks between minhyuk’s eyes and minhyuk’s hand on eunkwang’s thigh. eunkwang can feel his ears getting hot. he wishes he didn’t change into different clothes before the movie started, then he wouldn’t feel like minhyuk’s hand is burning through the fabric of his thin basketball shorts. eunkwang makes a sigh of relief as minhyuk slowly slides his hand away. he clears his throat, “uh, so, do you wanna start, um, learning tomorrow? tomorrow night probably?”

minhyuk smiles, “yeah, i’d like that.”

they stare into each other’s eyes, growing silent. eunkwang notices that minhyuk’s eyes are a dark brown, but, like his tail, the light hits his eyes in a way that makes them appear redder in colour. his eye shape is relatively small, and one eyelid has a crease while the other doesn’t. eunkwang thinks minhyuk’s eyes are pretty and cute.

when eunkwang realises he’s getting closer to minhyuk’s face, he blinks and backs away quickly. he shakes his head and slaps his cheeks, which feel hot under his hands. he blows a stream of air to collect himself.

minhyuk clears his throat, making eunkwang turn towards him. “so... what do humans do when they sleep?”

 

*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*

 

for the first time in a long while, eunkwang was dreaming.

he dreamt of sitting in water, only as high as his chest. the waves were gentle, the sky was clear and blue, and there seemed to be no end in sight. a soft breeze was blowing, and it blew eunkwang’s bangs into his eyes.

with how calm everything was, eunkwang should have felt relaxed, but something about being in water that made him feel tense and anxious. maybe the water would suddenly rise and he’d drown. maybe the breeze would get stronger and it’d knock him over. maybe there’ll be a storm and lightning hits him, maybe an earthquake that opens up the earth and he falls in, maybe there’s an end that he can’t see and he’ll be crushed against it, maybe—

he feels something against his back. eunkwang lets out a long sigh that felt as though it had been building up inside him for a long time. he can tell it’s a person, and their warmth—their presence—against him is comforting.

the level of the water slowly drops, going from his chest to his waist. his shirt remains dry, but the person behind him is wet. some of the water soaks into the back of eunkwang’s shirt, and when the person leans their head back against his, their hair also feels wet. even so, eunkwang feels more relaxed than when the person wasn’t there. he lets himself lean back a little; the person accepts the weight.

eunkwang closes his eyes, a feeling of serenity washing over him.

 

eunkwang wakes up, blinking any sleep away. he turns onto his back to stretch. a yawn brings tears to his eyes, which he slowly wipes away.

he lays in bed, thinking about the dream. it obviously pertains to his fear of being in water, but he wonders why he dreamt of it now when he hasn’t been in water in a long time. maybe it’s because minhyuk is here? and the person in his dream would then be minhyuk.

eunkwang turns onto his other side, yawning again. when his eyes focus, he sees minhyuk across from him. he jumps with a shout, making minhyuk furrow his eyebrows. minhyuk slowly opens his eyes with a glare. “why’d you... scrm...” minhyuk mumbles.

“didn’t expect to see you there...” eunkwang whispers.

for the past few days, minhyuk has been sleeping in eunkwang’s bed. he didn’t want minhyuk to keep sleeping on the sofa, but eunkwang didn’t want to sleep on th sofa or the floor, so he’s been waking up surprised to find minhyuk next to him.

minhyuk yawns and stretches. “you know... being in air... makes me really stiff. i feel much lighter than i do in water, but–“ he jumps out of bed “–i seem to be using my muscles a lot less.”

eunkwang watches as minhyuk stretches this way and that, muscles flexing. he only looks away when minhyuk starts doing trunk twists, his cheeks dusting with red. “maybe you could invest in doing tai chi.”

“tai chi?”

“i think it’s like moving through water, but in air.”

minhyuk hums as he pulls his arm behind his back. “i’ll try searching for ‘tai chi’ later today, then.”

“oh?” eunkwang looks back at minhyuk “–you already know enough to read about it?”

minhyuk move his head side to side, cracking his neck. “not much i can do all day besides watch tv and learn how to read so–“ he places his hands on his hips, seeming satisfied with all the stretching “–i think i can spell ‘tai chi’.” he smiles, proud of himself.

eunkwang smiles with him, “impressive... maybe i should start saving up to get you your own phone.”

“maybe...” minhyuk trails off, looking to the side.

eunkwang eyes him for a second before looking at the clock—7:22am. he has about an hour or so before he has to head out for work. “i’ll get ready first.”

minhyuk looks up and nods, “go ahead.”

eunkwang stares at him, to which minhyuk only raises his eyebrows questioningly. eunkwang wonders what minhyuk’s thinking, but doesn’t say anything.

he gets up and goes to get ready, not seeing minhyuk’s eyeing him from the side.

 

 

  
today’s a slow day at work—few people seem to be coming in or out, and eunkwang hasn’t received a call since he came in. he guesses that it’s either a holiday he doesn’t know about or everyone’s just busy working at their desks. after a long while without anyone stopping by, eunkwang sits down and checks his phone. he sees notifications from the group chat and opens the app.

  
_123hoon_ :  
that’s why i have a gold plated napkin framed on my wall

 _yookyookyook_ :  
woah ........  
ig the little things do matter

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
as expected of our ilhoonie  
[sticker sent]

 _123hoon_ :  
uwu

 _eungga_ :  
hey guys

 _yookyookyook_ :  
oh no eunkwangie-hyungs here  
everyone leave the chat

 _eungga_ :  
nooo !!!!  
i’m bored :((

 _123hoon_ :  
stay bored

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
aren’t u at work  
where ur always too busy to talk

 _eungga_ :  
where i’m Usually too busy to talk  
today there’s barely anyone coming in :(

 _123hoon_ :  
maybe it’s a holiday  
have u checked ur calendar

 _eungga_ :  
yea  
nothing’s really happening today

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
[sticket sent]  
did u read ilhoonie’s story

 _eungga_ :  
yea !!  
our ilhoonie’s pretty cool huh uwu  
[sticket sent]

 _123hoon_ :  
aw stop complimenting me guys i’m tryna stay humble u-u

 _yookyookyook_ :  
lol

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
lol

 _eungga_ :  
lol

 _123hoon_ :  
[sticker sent]

  
eunkwang smiles as he talks with his friends. he has to break away sometimes for the few people that do come in, but for the most part he stays on his phone and talks with his friends. changsub even comes online and joins in, making it more fun.

eventually, someone asks about minhyuk:

  
_123hoon_ :  
oh yea eunkwangie-hyung  
how’s that guy you found

 _yookyookyook_ :  
OH YEA !!!!!!  
is he still telling u he’s a mermaid

 _eungga_ :  
he IS a mermaid !!!!!  
and he’s doin well  
this morning i found out that he can read well enough to search things now

 _chansobu-san_ :  
it sounds like hes ur kid lol

 _123hoon_ :  
oh i rmbr seein th pic of him  
why’d He decide 2 live w You

 _chansobu-san_ :  
i still think its a scam

 _eungga_ :  
he’s not scamming me !!!!!!!!!  
u guys have no faith >:(

 _yookyookyook_ :  
how are we supposed 2 believe that ur housing a mermaid when as far as we kno they dont exist

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
they could

 _eungga_ :  
they do !!!!!! i’d show u his tail if i didn’t think it was weird to do so ......  
hyunsik-ah u believe me :”0 ?

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
not entirely  
i still think it’s sketch  
but u seem so adamant abt it

 _123hoon_ :  
he’s pitying u eunkwangie-hyung

 _yookyookyook_ :  
id pity u too but then id start believing u and then id b self conscious when i go fishing bc what if i accidentally hook a mermaid or smth  
thats not fun

 _eungga_ :  
minhyuk did say humans steal fish from them when they’re hunting

 _yookyookyook_ :  
tell him i usually throw em back !!!!!!  
wait im not supposed to believe u  
dont tell ur friend that  
bc i dont believe him

 _chansobu-san_ :  
do u believe him or dont u ......  
idiot  
anyway if u cant show up proof then we cant really believe u

 _yookyookyook_ :  
ur th idiot  
dumbbutt  
also yea pics or didnt happen

 _chansobu-san_ :  
shut up

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
sorry but they’re right

 _yookyookyook_ :  
no U shut up

 _123hoon_ :  
maybe if we met him?

 _chansobu-san_ :  
U SHUT UP

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
can both of u shut up

 _123hoon_ :  
even if i don’t think he’s a mermaid i kinda wanna meet him

 _yookyookyook_ :  
yessir

 _chansobu-san_ :  
[sticker sent]

 _yookyookyook_ :  
I WANNA MEET HIM  
mayb i could get him a job as a model he looks th part  
ud get more money that way  
unless he moves out ig

 _chansobu-san_ :  
id b down for a meetup

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
me too

 _123hoon_ :  
u think we could hyung?

 _eungga_ :  
i’ll  
have to think about it  
idk if he’ll feel comfortable w me showing him off to my friends

 _123hoon_ :  
just ask when u get home tonight  
anyway my friend jus gave me 2 coupons to the new boba place opening up down the street from my place y’all wanna meet up there today ?

 _yookyookyook_ :  
oooooo yeaa !!!

 _tigersiksikie_ :  
yeah !!!  
i’ll b a lil late tho

 _chansobu-san_ :  
HELL YEAH !!!

 _eungga_ :  
yea !!!

  
eunkwang breaks away again to stand and greet someone as they walk up to the desk. he helps them find their meeting room, then sits back down. his phone buzzes with notifications, but he doesn’t check his phone right away. instead, he thinks about whether or not he should really introduce minhyuk to his friends.

he knows that if they needed to keep a secret, they would—that’s why eunkwang told them minhyuk was a mermaid in the first place—but a part of him wants to keep minhyuk to himself. it’s a weird notion, and he tries not to think too much about it.

he picks up his phone. eunkwang will discuss it more with his friends when he sees them later, and he’ll ask minhyuk tonight. whatever feeling he has of keeping minhyuk to himself, eunkwang tucks away into the back of his mind.

**Author's Note:**

> my first chaptered fic in a long while ... :”)
> 
> this is mostly an introductory chapter so sorry if it feels a lil choppy :( i started this fic super late into the month so i wasn’t able to finish it before the month ended but i wanted 2 get this out asap !!!! so i’ll try my best to finish w th best quality possible !!!
> 
> fic twt @melodiclines now ;0


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